From heatwaves to droughts to storms, climate change poses one of the biggest health threats to Australians. Yet the federal government makes no mention of it in its strategic health planning.
Extreme heatwaves aren’t systematically monitored in most countries in sub-Saharan Africa. This leads to unnecessary and premature deaths which are often unrecorded.
The report by the World Meteorological Organisation shows that with large and rapid emissions cuts, we can still avoid the most severe climate change. But worryingly, we also have time to make it far worse.
The study examined patterns of Twitter rage in hot and cold weather. Given anger spreads through online communities faster than any other emotions, the findings are important.
In South Asia, days with both extreme heat and extreme pollution are expected to increase 175% by 2050. Separately, the health effects are bad; together they will likely be worse.
Older records can tell us a lot about Australia’s pre-industrial climate, before the large-scale burning of fossil fuels tainted global temperature records.
At the peak of a summer heatwave in Adelaide, an aerial survey of land surface temperatures reveals just how much cooler neighbourhoods with good tree and vegetation cover can be.